It is back. But not in the way you remember.
The Lancia Gamma was supposed to be this sleek, quirky icon. A Pininfarina dream from 1976. Two doors? Yes. Four-door fastback Berlinas? Also yes. Sharp lines, sharp edges. Pure Italian flair.
What we have now? A big SUV. A coupe-SUV really. If you close your eyes, it looks suspiciously like a Peugeot 3008 with different stickers on the bumpers.
Don’t cry for the old coupe yet, but don’t expect to recognize it immediately either.
Why the disguise?
Well. Look at the numbers. The new Gamma measures 4.67 meters long, 1.89 meters wide, 1.66 meters tall. It is nearly identical to the Peugeot. Why build a new car when you can just buy one?
Stellantis seems to think “good enough” is the new Italian design language.
The front end
It is soft. Rounded. There are three-strake lights up top that Lancia calls the ‘calice’ – same stuff from their tiny Ypsilon hatch. The real headlights? Hidden down low in the bumper. The mouth area has active shutters, supposedly for aero.
Efficiency is the buzzword, not speed. Not anymore.
Side and rear profile
More surface area here than on the Peugeot cousin, which leans harder on angles. The door handles tell a story, though. Front ones are flush. Rear ones? Concealed inside that triangular C-pillar. Nod to the 70s Berlinas, maybe. Or just a lazy design cue carried over from the French prototype.
Around the back, it keeps it simple. Slender lights, raked rear glass, twin spoiler fins, big Lancia lettering. Bold. Or desperate? Who knows.
Interior madness
This is where it tries to be interesting again. Or eccentric, depending on how much you like clutter.
Inside the Gamma, they put a leather-lined coffee table right in the dash. It holds your coffee and charges your phone wirelessly. Aesthetic? Practical? Both? Probably neither.
There are two screens, naturally. The steering wheel uses touch buttons, meaning you’ll probably fumble while driving. The colors are white and blue, giving it a sort of sterile clinic vibe mixed with luxury theater.
Expect screens where physical buttons used to be, and coffee where storage used to be.
Power and platform
Boring bit time. The Gamma sits on the STLA M multi-energy platform. Share the bed with the Citroen C5, the DS No8, and obviously the Peugeot.
What do you get under the hood?
- Base Hybrid: Turbocharged 1.2L petrol engine. 143 bhp. It gets around.
- EV versions: Up to 460 miles range. Solid.
- Performance AWD: 370 bhp. 0-62 mph in six seconds. Adequate for an SUV, thrilling for no one.
But wait.
They mentioned something called the Gamma HF Integrale.
That name is a direct wink to the rally legends of the 80s. The Delta. The glory days. They won’t tell us what it actually does. Just that it exists. Maybe it has a turbo? Maybe it has a personality?
Probably not. But hope is free.
Where will you see it?
Made in Melfi. Italy. The old heart of Stellantis. They are also making a new Delta there for 2028. Reviving another dead name. Nostalgia on the assembly line.
Sad part? Not coming to the UK. Lancia abandoned us years ago, and they haven’t found their way back. You’ll have to stare at it across the Channel, dreaming about what the Delta HF could have been if it didn’t become a crossover.
The badge is Italian, but the soul is French. At least for now.
Will you buy an Italian car with French bones and American software?
That is the real question.
